the sorrowing mothers of France. At the time of the accession of Henry the Sixth, the "Lord O'Reilly" was abbat of the House of the Blessed Virgin of Kells, by which titles the protectorate of the infant King empowered him, for the promotion of peace, to treat with "the Irish enemy of that vicinity, to rank as any of English condition, and to hold his abbacy for life, with any other benefice to which he might be promoted, so long as he continued loyal to the Crown of England."

In the following century, about the close of the year 1537, the conduct of the Lord Deputy Grey in regard to this Cavan sept formed one of the many items of impeachment that afterwards brought him to the scaffold. "This Lord Deputy," complain the Council to Secretary Cromwell, "without advice of us, at the suit of one Chamberlain of Athboy, licensed him, for his private cause, with part of his retinue to make a pledge upon a brother of O'Reilly called Čahir Mor, then being in the King's peace; and they made a prey, in pursuit whereof the same Cahir was slain, for amends of whose death, and restitution of that prey, O'Reilly with all his country began to move war, in so much as the Lord Deputy

and Council have had much work hitherto to stay the same, wherein they have recently taken a certain order with the messengers of O'Reilly, which, if it be performed, we trust we have peace with him." This parley appears to have been effective, for in four years afterwards the Council of Ireland announced to the King, "O'Reilly, being here at your grace's parliament, and wearing the apparel which your highness sent to him of your grace's gift, made humble suit to us to be petitioners for him unto your majesty, that he might have and hold his lands upon your highness to him and to his heirs for ever; wherefore, if your grace be so contented, because he is a man of great power, we think it convenient that he have the honour of a Viscount, and to be called Viscount of the Cavan, which is the chief town of his country." To which recommendation the King replied, "Touching O'Reilly, upon your commendation of his services, we be content both to give him his lands and the honour of

the Viscount of Cavan, willing you, our Deputy, our Chancellor, and Chief Justice, to take such order for the division both of his country and of all others which shall have their lands hereafter in like sort as he may hold of us that which we shall give unto him, and to have our letters patent accordingly." The royal intention or direction as to the viscountcy never was fulfilled, neither was a commission of survey, which it appears by the Council-books was then designed, to facilitate the division alluded to, ever effected. On the contrary, in five years afterwards "the Lord O'Reilly" petitioned "the right honourable and very good Lord Harry, King of England, France, and Ireland," in which he urges "the cause of my writing at this time unto your grace is, to beseech you to be so good a King to your majesty's poor servant, as to consider the great costs that I have done about my hundred men that I sent unto your grace into England; and I certify unto your grace my hundred men cost me 6007. for the going and coming to Chester and Holyhead, since wind was contrary to them. Now I desire your noble grace, for that same costs that I had done, and for the service I do every day unto your grace's Deputy in Ireland, to shend' to me a little farm that is within my own land, and it is no more but 187. a year, that Prior Ford had, to have that for myself and my own after me."

In the Parliament of 1560 Philip O'Reilly and Edward O'Reilly sat as representatives of their sept and territory rather than of the "county" of Cavan, for in truth it was not until twenty-four years after that this district was created a county; immediately previous to which the Irish Privy Council-book exhibits "Articles between the Council of Ireland and Sir John O'Reilly, knight, of the Brefney, alias O'Reilly's country," wherein it was stipulated that he should not assemble the Queen's people upon hills, or use any "eraghts" or parleys upon hills; that he should not keep any Brehons, or suffer the Irish Brehon law to be used within his country; that he should not take eric or compensationmoney for murder or killing, or suffer any other under him to take the like; he should not give comric to any gentle

man or lord's men, children, or brethren, that shall happen to offend against the Queen's laws; and should not levy any black rent, nor use nor keep within his house any Irish bard, carrogh, or rhymer, but to the uttermost of his power help to remove them from his country. During the viceroyalty of Sir John Perrot in that year, Cavan was one of the nine counties formed in Ulster under his influence and direction, the name being given to it from the chief town within its limits, while it was justly incorporated with the province to whose great native lord, O'Neill, its adherence is evinced by history to have been through generations unchangeable. This whole county was thereupon subdivided into seven baronies, of which two were assigned to the before-mentioned Sir John O'Reilly, free of all contributions; three others were conveyed to his immediate male relatives; and the two remaining, which were situated among the mountains and on the borders of O'Rourke's territory, were left to the continued and undisturbed possession of their ancient occupants, the septs of MacKernan and MacGauran, to be held on the ancient Irish tenures, and all these baronies being recognised as subject to ancient services and duties to Sir John O'Reilly.

These recognitions of divided proprietorships did not (as it may be inferred) advance the order and settlement of the county; and when Sir John died, in 1596, the O'Neill, i. e. Hugh Earl of Tyrone, asserting an exercise as of former prerogatives, affected to appoint, on individual selection, the ruler over all Brefney. A year of sanguinary feud succeeded this act, and near its close Philip O'Reilly, "Lord of the territory of BrefneyO'Reilly," was slain in rebellion. After his fall no tanist was elected to the title of the O'Reilly, the power once annexed to the honour had ceased, the inhabitants were broken down but unamenable, and a novel and arbitrary course of renovation, a transfusion of blood, was devised, as the policy of the reigning monarch; a policy which has, under different but not less alarming symptoms of prostration, been within the present year recommended for the restoration of other parts of this island. Some years previous, the project of an

extensive plantation of new settlers in Ireland was submitted to the vigilance of Queen Elizabeth, when, in 1586, the attainder of the great Earl of Desmond and his adherents left a depopulated wasted palatinate, the "honours, castles, manors, lands," &c. of a large portion of Munster, 600,000 acres, with the royalties, at her majesty's absolute disposal. The announcement of such a derelict wilderness of naturally fruitful country could not fail to suggest and invite royal encouragement for migration hither from England, and with the object of promoting the new colonization, allaying the fears and prejudices of some, and stimulating the expectations of others, a "Brief Description of Ireland" was, immediately after passing the act which confirmed the attainder of Desmond, drawn up by an intelligent individual, who was then entrusted with the care of the Cork estates of the forfeiting proprietors. A copy of that interesting document is now before me, and, although apparently referring to localities and a state of things beyond the bounds of this county, it is yet of such a national character as may make its insertion here not unacceptable at this moment. Much of that writer's admonitory observations and estimates, though they may seem exaggerated in detail, are in principle well worthy of extended circulation at a time when capital and industry are invited hither from your country, and should be welcomed and incorporated with our best attainable native resources.

"Let not the reports," writes the author of this Brief Description, "of those that have spent all their own and what they could by any means get from others in England, discourage you from Ireland; although they, and such others, by bad dealings have wrought a general discredit to all Englishmen in that country, which are to the country unknown. These men will say there is great danger in travelling the country, and much more to dwell or inhabit there. Yet are they freed from three of the greatest dangers; first, they cannot meet in all that land any worse than themselves; secondly, they need not fear robbing, for that they have not any thing to lose; and, lastly, they are not likely to run into debt, for that there is none to trust them.

The greatest matter which disableth them is, they cannot get anything there but by honest travail, which they are altogether ignorant of." After this exordium of quaint sarcasm, he continues, "These men cannot tell what good fruits England hath, the which Ireland wanteth; neither can they justly say but it lieth better for the vent of all commodities than England doth .. Although some of small judgment (which think every soil good which beareth long grass) have failed of their expected woad crops by means of their unskilful choice of ground, yet assuredly the commodities of the country are many more than either the people can well use or I recite. Their soil, for the most part, is very fertile, and apt for wheat, rye, barley, peas, beans, oats, mather, woad, raye, hemp, flax, and all other grains and fruits that England anywise doth yield. There is much good timber in many places, and of that straightness and so good to rive, that a simple workman with a brake-axe will cleave a great oak to boards of less than one inch thick, fourteen inches broad, and fifteen feet in length; such a board there is usually sold for twopence halfpenny. There is very rich and great plenty of ironstone, and one sort more than they have in England, which they call bogmine, of which a smith there will make at his forge iron presently; also there is a great store of lead-ore, and wood sufficient to maintain divers iron and lead works (with great husbandry) for ever.... A fresh salmon, worth in London ten shillings, is sold there for sixpence." The "Description" then details, on similar reasonable estimates, the prices of other fish, meat, fowls, horses, &c.; and after such calculations proceeds: "Although the name of the Irish among the ignorant is odious, yet how many have you seen executed in England for treason, murder, or felony, and yet know their cases are scarce so well favoured as others our nearer neighbours, which daily pester our prisons, and monthly deck our gallowses. I cannot deny but in the Desmond's wars were many Irish traitors; yet herein judge charitably, for such was the misery of that time, that many were drawn to this bad choice, viz. whether they would be spoiled as well by the enemy as the

worst sort of soldiers at home, or go out to the rebels and be hanged-which is the fairest end of a traitor. But, as touching their government, where they bear rule, it is done with such wisdom, equity, and justice, as merits worthy commendations; for I myself, divers times in different places, within their jurisdiction, have seen well near twenty causes decided at one sitting with such indifference, that, for the most part, both plaintiff and defendant had departed contented; yet many that make shew of peace and desireth to live by blood, do utterly mislike this or any good thing that the poor Irishman doth; wherefore let us daily pray unto Almighty God to put into the heart of our sovereign, that as her highness is Queen of so great and bountiful a country, wherein her majesty hath a great number of loyal and dutiful subjects, to have especial care that they be not numbered nor gathered up with traitorous rebels, neither that her majesty will vouchsafe to tolerate traitorous subjects to stand upon any condition but only her gracious mercy; then would the hope of the rebels be soon cut off, and the good subjects emboldened to fetch them in, which now dare not so to do for fear of after harms."

The advocacy of this report, which was published in a pamphlet at London in 1590, and yet more the ensuing effective location of various English "undertakers" over the south of the island, must have greatly influenced the policy of King James, when similar attainders of those who might be considered to have held Ulster as their palatinate, induced like confiscations over this province. To the county of Cavan, however, must the notices of this letter be confined. To many members of its aforesaid septs that monarch, immediately after his accession, granted patents of pardon which are of record in the rolls of the Irish Chancery; and, this dispensation of amnesty being concluded, the work commenced in the third year of his reign of granting the estates, alluded to as having been forfeited within this county; but it was at first fearfully and delicately attempted, and only by a shifting of native proprietors and occupants, or of those who had been theretofore naturalised, without the

introduction of others from beyond sea. At length in 1609 King James issued his memorable commission to the lord deputy and other high officials, wherein, after reciting that great scopes and extent of land in this and the other counties of Ulster were escheated and vested in the Crown by the attainder of sundry traitors and rebels, and by other good and lawful titles, "the surveys of which being transmitted to us, we considered, with our privy council attending our person, how much it would advance the welfare of that kingdom if the said land were planted with colonies of civil men and well affected in religion, whereupon there was a project conceived for the division of said lands into proportions, and for the distribution of the same to undertakers, with certain articles of instruction for such as should be appointed commissioners for the said plantations." His majesty then directs that such last-mentioned commissioners should be thereby authorised to inquire on oath, what castles, manors, lordships, fisheries, advowsons, &c. within said counties had escheated or ought to escheat to the Crown; to make an exact survey, applot, divide, and class the lands into parishes, and to execute all other works and acts necessary for the project, and finally to determine all controversies as well between the Crown and the subject as between party and party. In the promotion of the object of this great national measure, it was ordered that all portions and allotments should be assigned, not in aid of private profit, but for the advancement of public service, giving to no one more than he was able to plant; that therefore the parcels should vary in their contents from 1,000 and 1,500 to 2,000 acres, and in some cases more; that every undertaker should be bound to build a castle or bawn or stone house according to the magnitude of the respective holdings, to furnish them with sufficient store of arms, and to draw their tenants also to build near such principal castle, bawn, or house. It was likewise enjoined that each undertaker should take the oath of supremacy, and not alienate to a mere Irishman, or to any who would not take the same oath; that he should, within two years, plant English and Scotch

upon his proportion; should maintain residence, and have power to erect manors with courts baron; should not demise at will, but only on interests certain as for years, for life, in tail, or in fee simple, with certain privileges for importing and exporting (duty free) provisions and articles of outfit for five years. In pursuance of this royal authority, an inquisition was taken in this as in other counties of Ulster, and thereupon, and in conformity with the conditions of the plantation, various grants were made by patents, chiefly to "adventurers from Scotland, whose descendants are still located over the province.

The Lord Deputy, appointed in King James's Commission, was Sir Arthur Chichester, afterwards created Baron of Belfast, ancestor of the Earls of Donegal; who, in a letter to the Earl of Northampton (preserved in the British Museum), writes of this movement with especial reference to CAVAN.

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My honourable good Lord,-The condition of the affairs and state here is such at this time, as it affords little other matter to be imparted than that which concerns the escheated lands in Ulster, into which we have made our entrance, and of this subject I have so largely written in the general letters to your Lordship, that I should commit an error in troubling you in the superfluous repetition thereof; to which work I see your Lordship is affected, for you have made a good choice of the persons you have sent to undertake your precinct; and if their resolution be as good to abide a storm when it happens, as their purses are (for the most part) to perform the conditions, there is no doubt but they will do well and find commodity by it. But when I consider that the work we have in hand is one of the greatest that hath been undertaken by the Kings of England in many ages, and the condition of the parties that have undertaken it,-I mean for such as have come yet in person unto us, I do

then conceive that these are not the men that must perform the business, but that we must expect some other; for to remove and displace the natives, who are a warlike people, out of the greatest part of six whole counties, and to bring in strangers to replant

the same, is not a work for persons who seek a private profit. In the distribution of the precincts made there I cannot but think that the servitors and natives were greatly neglected in all counties but that of the CAVAN, for we considered here that the one-half at least of each county would have been left and assigned for them, but now they have but one barony in a county, and in some less; which hath grieved the servitors, and so discontented the natives, that they (the natives I mean) will do what spite and malice can invent, to hinder the proceeding and good success in a work, so commendable in itself, and profitable to all posterities; and sure I am, had I not disarmed them of their weapons and instruments of war (as I did the first and second year after I came to this government), many of them had by this time declared themselves rebels; for it is not to be thought that their hearts are better affected at this time; and, if we be not furnished with money to lie in deposit to answer such a sudden alarm, and to encounter them upon their first insurrection (if any be, which God forbid,) our delay in attending of it from thence will increase their number as well as their pride, and so enable them to give the stronger opposition.-At his Majesty's castle of Dublin, the last of October, 1610."

Thirty-one years afterwards, about the same day of the month, the memorable civil war of 1641 broke out in

Ulster. In the county of Cavan, both its then representatives in parliament, "O'Reilly and the sheriff his brother, were," says Leland, "deeply engaged in the rebellion. They proceeded with unusual regularity; the sheriff summoned the Popish inhabitants to arms; they marched under his command with the appearance of discipline; forts, towns, and castles were surrendered to them. Bedell Bishop of Kilmore was compelled to draw up their remonstrance of grievances, to be presented to the chief governors and council, in which they declare their apprehension on account of religion, express their regret at being forced to seize the King's forts for his majesty's service, and profess their readiness to make restitution for any outrages committed by their inferior followers." Dr. Burnet, who wrote the "Life of Bedell," says that the Bishop did draw up the remonstrance, but rather suggests that he lent his aid in sympathy than from coercion.

I have but space to add here, that in the Parliament held by James the Second in Dublin, in May, 1689, Philip O'Reilly and John Reylly affected to represent this county, as did Philip Oge O'Reilly and Hugh Reylly the borough of Cavan. In the time of Dean Swift, this county, having been the birthplace and long the residence of his friend Dr. Sheridan, was much associated with the biography and writings of each. Yours, &c.

JOHN D'ALTON.

manner might be deemed most advantageous to private and public interests. Indeed, the issue of banknotes had almost kept pace with the creation of shares in the Indian Company. We have already seen that the arrêt which constituted Law's private enterprise the royal bank, had limited the issue of billets to 100,000,000. Nevertheless, by the end of October 1719, there existed 520,000,000, by the end of November 640,000,000, and at the close of the year 1,000,000,000. Was this the work of an economist, led into extra